Rally of Great Britain 1999
Friday 19 November
COMMUNIQUE 1

MITSUBISHI AIMS FOR REPEAT
RALLY OF GREAT BRITAIN VICTORY

Marlboro Mitsubishi Ralliart intends to celebrate Finn Tommi Makinen’s fourth consecutive FIA World Rally Championship (subject to FIA confirmation) in style, by taking its third victory on the final round of the 1999 series, the Rally of Great Britain. Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution driver Makinen has strong support from Belgium’s Freddy Loix, driving a Mitsubishi Carisma GT.

Britain’s round of the World Rally Championship is one of the oldest and most popular rallies in the world. Crowds are expected to total more than a million people over the course of the three-day rally and they will be out in force on the first day. For the last time, the first leg will be run primarily for the benefit of spectators, with a series of short, crowd-pleasing stages at race tracks and parks in southern England, such as Silverstone and Blenheim. The bulk of the stages are in central and southern. As usual, the weather is far from predictable: the forecast is for mostly dry albeit cold conditions at first, with a possibility of fog.

Although Makinen and co-driver Risto Mannisenmaki have yet to win the Rally of Great Britain, they are relaxed after clinching the World Championship yet again. They have high hopes of scoring their fifth win of the season in the Michelin-shod Lancer Evolution, despite fierce opposition from British drivers Richard Burns and Colin McRae.

"I think we can win. Of course it’s going to be difficult, but we have exactly the same chance as Richard and Colin. I have been rallying in Britain for many years and I know what the stages are like. We have made some improvements to the car recently and it should work really well here. I am looking forward very much to the rally", Makinen said.

Belgian team-mates Freddy Loix and Sven Smeets are making their first appearance in Britain and their main priority is to chalk up another finish in the ever-reliable Carisma GT on one of the toughest rallies in the World Championship.

"I am quite impressed - the rally goes to so many beautiful areas! The stages are incredibly quick - faster than I expected - and very slippery in places. The most important thing is finishing of course. We will just do our thing", Loix stated.

Mitsubishis have won the Group N production category on all but two of the 13 World Championship rallies held so far this year. There is every chance of rounding off the year with another resounding victory, as there are more than 40 Lancer Evolutions and Carisma GTs in the class, making them easily the most popular choice of car for the rally.

The rally begins on Sunday morning with a special stage at Cheltenham’s famous racecourse before heading east. The first leg includes seven stages, totalling 34 kilometres.